Inkstand



(No Model.)

J. H. GIFFORD.

INKSTAND.

No. 483,840. Patented Oct 4, 1892.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

' JOHN II; GIFFORD, OF SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS.

INKSTAND.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 483,840, dated October 4, 1892. Application filecl AugustlO, 1392. $erialNo. 442,726. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

. Be it known that 1, JOHN I1. GIFFORD, a citizen of the United States, residing at Springfield, in the county of Hampden and State of Massachusetts,have invented new and useful Improvements in Ink-W'ells for School and other Desks, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to ink stands or wells.

The object is to provide, more particularly for school-desks, an improved ink-well, no part of which when the well is closed projects above the surface of the desk in which it is located, and thereby obviating the inconvenience arising from having any projecting part above said surface which obstructs the free movement of books and other articles thereon; and the invention consists in the peculiar construction and arrangement of the several parts of the ink-well, all as hereinafter fully described, and more particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings forming part of the specification, Figure 1 is a perspective View of an ink-well embodying my improvements, the cover thereof being shown in an opened position. This figure shows, also, a section of the top of a desk or table in which the ink-well is placed. Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the ink-well on the line 2 2, Fig. 1, the well being there shown with its cover closed. Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view of the body of the inkwell on line 3 3, Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a top plan view of the well, certain parts beneath the rim being indicated in dotted lines. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the cover of the well and of the device which connects the cover with the well-body. Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the ink-cup.

In the drawings, J indicates the section of the top of a desk or table in which the inkwell is placed and suspended, as shown in Fig. 1.

The body A of the ink-Well is made, preferably, from cast-iron, and is provided with a laterally-extending rim 4 around its upper end for engagement with the top of said table or desk, said rim being let into the top of said table, whereby the outer face of said rim and the top of the table are brought to a coinciding plane, as shown. It will be noted that the body A of the well is arranged under the rim 4: eccentrically to the latter. This arrangement provides room between the projectiug rim of the ink-cup and the adjoining inner wall of said body to allow free movements of the cover-hanging devices, as and .for the purpose below setforth. The said "body A is constructed with two openings 0 and 6 through its sides nearly opposite each other, into which the bosses 8 and 9 of the cover D freely enter when the cover is brought to a closed position, as shown in Fig. 2. The edge portions of the body at the upper side of said openings 0 and e are so formed as to constitute two cam-shaped pending edges 3 and 7. (See Figs. 3 and 1.) When said coverD is closed, as aforesaid, the boss 8 thereon falls through the notch 5 in the rim of the bodyA and the boss 9 passes into the said opening e, and thus the said bosses 8 and 9 are brought under the edges of said cams 3 and 7 and then by seizing the cover by entering the finger and thumb in the depressions shown therein it is turned to bring said bosses gradually under the wider portions of said cams, thereby causing said cover to be locked down and forced closely against the top of the ink-cup of the device. The said body A is provided with a screwhole 6 through its side, whereby a screw may 8:. be passed through the side into the table J to secure the ink-well thereto. The said body A is provided with a shoulder 2 around its inner wall, on which the ink-cup B is supported by its rim, which engages with said shoulder, as shown, said ink-cup being preferably of glass.

The cover D of the device consists of a circular frame, preferably of cast-iron, which fits into the upper end of the body A, as shown in Figs. 2 and 4., and has secured to its under or inner side a cork or other soft or flexible washer 13 by means of arivet15, which passes through the cover, as shown in Fig. 2. The said washer 13 is preferably secured between 5 two thin metallic circular washers a: and 14, whereby the border portion of said washer 13, which bears upon the upper end of the inkcup B to close the latter, is properly supported against deflection, and is thus caused to lie too closely against the open end of said cup and tightly shut in the ink. The outer side of the frame of said cover D is preferably formed with depressions in its outersurface, as shown in Fig. 5 most clearly, whereby provision is made for entering the finger and thumb into two of said depressions z e on opposite sides of the center of the cover to turn the latter to disengage the bosses 8 and 9 from said cams of the body A and then to lift the cover and throw it over to the position shown in Fig. l, in which position the cover remains while the ink-well is in use. To facilitate the grasping of the cover D, as aforesaid, the wall of each one is cut away opposite the central rivet 15, as shown in Fig. 5. The said recess 5 in the rim of the ink-well body permits the boss 8 on said cover to pass under the rim 4 when the cover is shut, and the two bosses 8 and 9 are brought under the borders of said cams 3 and 7, preparatory to turning the cover to lock it. To the end that the said cover D may be manipulated in the manner aforesaid, whereby it is permitted to be lifted clearly above and free from the rim of the ink-well to open the same and to be moved to effect the closing and locking of the cover,

as aforesaid, a peculiar hinge connection between said cover and the body of the well is provided, which permits said cover when the ink-well is to be opened and closed to have the below-mentioned several movements, viz: to be turned on the top of the body, to be lifted and moved forwardly and upwardly above the rim 4, to be swung rearwardly over to an inclined position and brought to rest upon said rim, and then to be swung again forwardly over the top of the well and tipped and moved rearwardly over the same to engage the boss 9 under the cam 7, and then to drop the cover onto its seat, and then to again turn the cover to engage the bosses 8 and 9 effectually under said cams, whereby the inkcup is closed. The said hinge connection consists of a metallic ring 12, which loosely encircles the lower portion of the body A of the ink-well, and from said ring a link 10 extends upwardly or substantially at right angles 1 thereto. The cover D is pivotally connected to the end of said link, as clearly shown in;

Figs. 1 and 5. The said ring and link are made, preferably, from suitable wire in the form described and shown. It will be seen that during the above-described movements of the cover to unlock, open, close, and relock the same the ring 12 of said hinge connection has a free vertical and circular movement on the lower end of the body A, and that the upper portion of the link 10 has similar free movements within the said opening 6 in the side of the body A directly beneath that part of the cover on which is the said boss 9.

It is obvious that the cover D may be conveniently manipulated to close the top of the ink-well and lock it thereon and to open it and allow said cover to lie fiatly'on the table tering said body having thereon laterally-extending bosses for engagement with said cams, a hinge connection, substantially as described,between said cover and body, which permits the cover to be reciprocally rotated within and lifted above said body and swung to a position of rest above said rim, and an ink-cupsuspended in said body, substantially as set forth.

2. In an ink-well, a body, substantially as described, having a laterally-extending rim at its upper extremity and two pending cams beneath said rim, combined with a cover entering said body, having thereon bosses for engagement with said cams, a hinge connec-' tion between said cover and body, consisting of a pending link engaging with one of said bosses, having a ring on its lower end encircling said body and having a free vertical and reciprocally-rotating movement thereon, and an ink-cup suspended in said body, substantially as set forth.

3. In an ink-well, a body, substantially as described, having a laterally-extending rim at its upper extremity eccentrically located on said body and having two pending cams beneath said rim and a recess 5 in the inner border thereof, and a concentric shoulder in said body on which to hang an ink-cup, combined with a cover closing the upper end of said body, having the bosses 8 and 9 thereon for engagement with said cams, the link 10, engaging with said boss 8 and having the ring 12 on its free end encircling and freely engaged with said body, and an ink-cup, substantially as set forth. I

4. An ink-well body and cover consisting of a body, substantially as described, having a laterally-extending rim and two pending cams beneath said rim, combined with a cover entering said body, having thereon laterallyextending bosses for engagement with said cams, and a hinge device, substantially as described, between said cover and body, whereby the cover is loosely connected to the body and is thereby permitted to be reciprocally rotated within and lifted above said body and is supported in an outwardlyinclined position on said rim, substantially as set forth.

5. An ink-well consisting of a body, substantially as described, having a laterallyextending rim at its upper extremity in which is the recess 5, two pending cams beneath said rim, and a concentric shoulder in said body, on which to hang an ink-cup by its rim, combined with a cover having the depressions z 2, closing the upper end of said body and said ink-cup and having bosses IIO thereon for engagement with said cams, the

outer surface of said cover when in said body being in the plane of the surrounding rim 4, substantially as set forth.

JOHN H. GIFFORD. Witnesses:

H. A. CHAPIN, W. S. BELLows. 

